Chief accountant vs control accountant

The differences between chief accountants and control accountants can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 2-4 years to become both a chief accountant and a control accountant. Additionally, a control accountant has an average salary of $66,563, which is higher than the $61,481 average annual salary of a chief accountant.

The top three skills for a chief accountant include external auditors, reconciliations and general ledger accounts. The most important skills for a control accountant are reconciliations, general ledger accounts, and payroll taxes.

Chief accountant vs control accountant overview

	Chief Accountant	Control Accountant
Yearly salary	$61,481	$66,563
Hourly rate	$29.56	$32.00
Growth rate	6%	6%
Number of jobs	52,287	75,702
Job satisfaction	4	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 69%	Bachelor's Degree, 73%
Average age	44	44
Years of experience	4	4

What does a chief accountant do?

Chief accountants develop financial strategies, oversee the accounting department, make investment decisions, and develop financial strategies. They provide assistance to departments with their reviews and budgets, tax studies, and internal control. It is part of their job to respond to the accounting questions from time management. They take charge of monitoring and recording financial transactions based on corporate regulations and policies. Also, they recommend changes to the procedures of accounting.

What does a control accountant do?

A Control Accountant is in charge of managing a company's accounting records and spearheads the development of financial reports. Although the extent of their responsibilities depends on their place or industry of employment, it typically includes coordinating with different teams to gather and analyze data, conduct audits and risk analyses, monitor budgets and expenditures, review documents and other transactions and develop strategies to optimize operations. A Control Accountant leads and encourages staff to reach goals while implementing the company's policies and regulations.

Chief accountant vs control accountant salary

Chief accountants and control accountants have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Chief Accountant	Control Accountant
Average salary	$61,481	$66,563
Salary range	Between $43,000 And $87,000	Between $48,000 And $91,000
Highest paying City	New York, NY	New York, NY
Highest paying state	New York	New York
Best paying company	IBM	Marathon Oil
Best paying industry	Retail	Finance

Differences between chief accountant and control accountant education

There are a few differences between a chief accountant and a control accountant in terms of educational background:

	Chief Accountant	Control Accountant
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 69%	Bachelor's Degree, 73%
Most common major	Accounting	Accounting
Most common college	University of Pennsylvania	University of Pennsylvania

Chief accountant vs control accountant demographics

Here are the differences between chief accountants' and control accountants' demographics:

	Chief Accountant	Control Accountant
Average age	44	44
Gender ratio	Male, 57.0% Female, 43.0%	Male, 49.2% Female, 50.8%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 8.2% Unknown, 3.9% Hispanic or Latino, 10.5% Asian, 15.3% White, 61.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5%	Black or African American, 8.8% Unknown, 4.0% Hispanic or Latino, 11.2% Asian, 12.1% White, 63.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5%
LGBT Percentage	7%	7%

Differences between chief accountant and control accountant duties and responsibilities

Chief accountant example responsibilities.

Manage and monitor accounting procedures for compliance with Sarbanes-Oxley and coordinate and facilitate external audit requirements.
Prepare monthly trial balance, balance sheets, and profit and loss statements according to GAAP.
Prepare monthly account reconciliations (bank reconciliation, accounts receivable reconciliation, accounts payable reconciliation, and general ledger reconciliation).
Research, advise and resolve accounting and business issues, ensuring compliance with U.S. GAAP and head office requirements.
Monitor deposits and withdrawals of revenue and expenses, review payroll, and ensure accurate processing and timely bank reconciliations.
Prepare daily SOX audit documentation, ensuring that bank account activity have been reconcile and to identify any outstanding variances.

Control accountant example responsibilities.

Prepare internal financial reports for treasury manage accounts include in external compliance reports.
Collect, analyze, interpret, and document information to support quarterly SOX reviews.
Ensure proper accounting in compliance with GAAP, regulatory reporting requirements and joint ownership contracts.
Identify variances between corporations, establish payable/receivable ledgers, and clear open variances in accordance with GAAP.
Control regional account analysis, provide explanations and backup to SOX reporting department.
Perform domestic and international roll forwards, quarterly schedules for goodwill, trademarks and acquisition activities utilizing Hyperion.

Chief accountant vs control accountant skills

Common chief accountant skills

External Auditors, 13%
Reconciliations, 10%
General Ledger Accounts, 9%
Balance Sheet Accounts, 7%
Financial Reports, 5%
Internal Controls, 4%

Common control accountant skills

Reconciliations, 11%
General Ledger Accounts, 7%
Payroll Taxes, 6%
Account Reconciliations, 5%
Accruals, 5%
Internal Controls, 5%

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Chief Accountant vs Control Accountant

Updated January 8, 2025

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